Cast brass head of a human. An opening at the top would have supported a carved elephant tusk. The heads wears elaborate "winged" headgear.

Subject Matter

Commemorative heads wear used in royal shrines in the Benin kingdom. Kings were honored and cared for after death, with their shrine as the focal point of supplication. The head is particularly important in Benin spirituality, as the head holds the fate of the individual. The king's head, however, holds the fate of the whole kingdom, and so must be properly cared for.

Carved wooden figure of a human. The torso, neck and head make an elongated cylinder along the certical axis. The hands rest at its sides near the umbilicus. The hair, face, hands, genitals, and feet are detailed.

Subject Matter

Representation of a female ancestor figure. The incised patterns on the figure mimic body scarification patterns then in use in Tabwa communities. The patterns are a kind of cosmogram: the symmetry and zigzag lines depict Tabwa conceptions of the relationships between the divine and earthly. Scarification is a kind of memory-making: the process of undergoing scarification creates a distinct mnemonic device, allowing the past to be quickly and vividly recalled in the present. In both skin and wood, the patterns associated with ancestral ties are made durable. The figure's coiffure is short and plaited, typical of Tabwa females, and denotes age and status.

Carved wooden figure of a human. The torso, neck and head make an elongated cylinder along the certical axis. The hands rest at its sides near the umbilicus. The hair, face, hands, genitals, and feet are detailed.

Subject Matter

Representation of a female ancestor figure. The incised patterns on the figure mimic body scarification patterns then in use in Tabwa communities. The patterns are a kind of cosmogram: the symmetry and zigzag lines depict Tabwa conceptions of the relationships between the divine and earthly. Scarification is a kind of memory-making: the process of undergoing scarification creates a distinct mnemonic device, allowing the past to be quickly and vividly recalled in the present. In both skin and wood, the patterns associated with ancestral ties are made durable. The figure's coiffure is short and plaited, typical of Tabwa females, and denotes age and status.

Carved wood figure of a human. The figure's torso, neck, and head are cyclindrical and elongated on the vertical axis. The figure's arms rest by its umbilicus, which protrudes slightly. Details of the hair, face, hands, genitals, and feet are carved in. The figure is incised with symmetrical, zigzag-ing lines.

Subject Matter

Representation of a male ancestor figure. The incised patterns on the figure mimic body scarification patterns then in use in Tabwa communities. The patterns are a kind of cosmogram: the symmetry and zigzag lines depict Tabwa conceptions of the relationships between the divine and earthly. Scarification is a kind of memory-making: the process of undergoing scarification creates a distinct mnemonic device, allowing the past to be quickly and vividly recalled in the present. In both skin and wood, the patterns associated with ancestral ties are made durable. The figure's coiffure is long, typical of Tabwa males, and denotes age and status.